Sherrill Silversmiths have number of unique superstitions

Same pair of socks before every game, a song that needs to be played before stepping up to bat or a photo that inspires in the dugout -- they may sound strange but for some players, it's the only way to get in the correct mindset.

A photo in the dugout is exactly what the Sherrill Silversmiths used to propel, or so they thought, the team to seven straight wins early in the season.

"There was this great picture we found of (teammate) (Matt) Ederle," said Hunter Keatts, a sophomore pitcher for Sherrill from Bell Buck, Tenn. "I don't know if we thought it helped exactly but after we had put it up on the road and we won with a late comeback, we decided to keep it up.

Advertisement

"But we took it down after we took our first loss."

For Joe Wagner a different type of picture helps him get in the game.

Before the Silversmiths' pitcher steps on the mound, he draws a smiley face on the mound and recites a bit of scripture.

"It just calms me down," said Wagner. "It's something I started doing a couple years ago and just have kind of done it every game since then."

Wagner says the smiley face, like it does for many, athlete or not, is to just be happy and the prayer is to just refocus him in the game.

Still even Wagner admits, putting too much focus on the in-game and pre-game rituals isn't always the best idea and doesn't always turn out well.

"Sometimes it can screw me up if I am thinking too much about doing it or if I realize I haven't done it," said Wagner, a senior at Hamilton College. "So I always have to make sure I don't let it get in to my head either way."

Thomas Moriarty lets the same song however get into his head every warm-up in the bullpen. Moriarty says he likes to listen to the same song -- though he wouldn't divulge what it was -- to help get him in the zone before stepping into a game.

"Kind of the same thing as Wagner, it helps get rid of my nerves," said Moriarty, also a senior at Hamilton.

But no matter the superstition or the ritual, Keatts said one thing that does remain the same across the team is playing their best each and every inning.

"I don't think you can ever put too much weight on superstitions," said Keatts. "I think the top focus though is just going out and working to get the win."